Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-11-19

Nc more unique, distinctive, and ct tat
came time popular character eleuds taior.
the people To-Day tbau El!a WheeIe
Wilcox.
Born in & Wisconsin, village scTe hiyty
odd years ago, when Wisconsin, Was 10
much more than 3 frontier sfa>e, without
| ilGqential friends or family. aCd Without
f5ofey, she InSGe for herself Y2re il
flitErature which c, T7ms1de5 atte1tj0r
| HFfOre she WAS aeigh.een Years Cd. II
| ole who kESYSs IL il CessiI der history
r6sds IRssfa' fairy story. Resred on s
| western rrairI5, she = IN ornaut ut e
| the most briilianG CirCles Of the melIop-
| offs
She had never seen CT editor or literary
| person and knew nothing = The me1buts
! Of getting into print when, at + u1feen,
| she read her first production 70 fEe press.
The New York Mafcary published these
! childish efforts which were written il
prose and under nom de-plumes.
1t declined the first poem she ever sent
for publication, and the editor sarcastic
ally advised her 10 "cTush hex &mbitiCns
TO be poet"
Tie Waverly Magazine has the honor
10 be the first TO present the nsme Ct EIls
Wheeler 10 the public.
Frank Lzelie sent her the first Chec k
she ever received st seventeen yexIs OF
age.
From that time TO the present day she
has never sTerved nor faltered IL the
steady, hard climb toward success.
She never sent g MANUSCRIPT in her lie
for criticism and never asked for aid or
influence in her literary ventures.
During the last fifteen years Ella
Wheeler has probably been the most crit
icised, Stused, praised, miscorstrued and
admired woman in the literary world.
Without particle OF effort to create S
sensation, everything sha has in that
time written has had the effect Of stirring
up criticism.
Her writings seem 10 be possessed Of q
certain something c0mhustible in their
composition, that on striking outer sir
invariably rends il With more or less Of
an explosion.
Her first published book WAS "DrOps Of
Whter,' q collection Of juvenile temper
ance verses. These were crude but filed
with the dramatic enthusiasm which has so
peTmested her later work, and provoked
praise and censure in prcportionate guam
titles from the cOntendirg forces on the
liquor question.
"Shells," little volume cow cut of
print, comes next.
"MauriDDe," by many considered Ter
finest work, and the famous Poe ms OF
Passion which set the literary world on
fire, followed within three years OF each
other.
Columns CT abuse and praise items rid
iculing and eulOgiziug the latter volume
filled all the papers IL the country.
Some Of her friends urged her to sup
press the book after it's first appearance,
but strong in the coursge of her convic-
tons, she read the severe Snd unjust re-
views through tears, not unmixed with
smiles at sight of the golden coins which
punctusted the comments of the critics.
Msny Of these dollars were spent in
building e home for aging parents, ard
much OF the halo now surrounding this
remarkable woman's life is the reflection
OF the generous deeds Of her early monied
life.
Milwaukee people gave her "beneht"
in Nav, 1888, when she was made the sub
lect CT speech by United States Sierra
Tor aud was presented with chins basket
containing $500 in gold.
Long before her happy marriage in May,
1884, with the elegant and cultivated gen
tleman who brought her 10 the east. her
nayue was household word and she was
q welcome guest in the best circles Of the
great northeast.
To her rare genius were added Unusual |
graces of person. She was brilliant |
and tsctful talker, a good dancer, and |